Analyst Consensus ?
ConsensusHold27 ratings
Bullish622.2%
Neutral1659.3%
Bearish518.5%
Franklin Resources, Inc. · BEN · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q2 2026
Franklin Resources Beats on EPS as Record Inflows and AI Drive Growth
Franklin Resources delivered a strong Q2 FY2026, beating EPS estimates by 29% ($0.71 vs $0.55) and revenue estimates by 2.9% ($1.75B vs $1.70B), driven by $16.9B in net inflows — a 28% sequential increase. The firm continues to execute on three growth pillars: alternatives fundraising ($22.9B this quarter toward a $30B+ annual target), the Canvas tax-optimization platform ($22.9B AUM, ~72% CAGR), and active ETFs ($62B AUM, 45% of the ETF franchise). New initiatives including the 250 Digital acquisition and FranklinCrypto launch extend the firm's reach into digital assets, while the AI-driven Intelligence Hub scales across distribution and operations. Management maintained guidance and reaffirmed its multi-year margin expansion target of >30% by 2027. The stock's 7.3% abnormal move on 2.4x volume, with a further 7.5% subsequent drift, suggests the market viewed the print as a…
Reported Before market openNYSEFinancial Services
$17.24B market cap
100quality score
Company context
Snapshot as of publicationFranklin Resources, Inc. is a publicly owned asset investment manager. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries. The firm invests in the public equity, fixed income, and alternative markets. Franklin Resources, Inc. was founded in 1947 and is based in San Mateo, California with an additional office in Calgary, Alberta; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Edinburgh, Midlothian; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Hyderabad, India; London, Greater London; Rancho Cordova, California; Shanghai, Shanghai Province; Singapore; Stamford, Connecticut; and Vienna.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensus
Reported EPS
$0.71
Consensus $1
EPS surprise
+29.1%
Reported versus consensus
Reported revenue
$1.75B
Consensus $1.70B
Revenue surprise
+2.9%
Reported versus consensus
Earnings History
Estimate
Beat
Miss
Match
Analyst 52W Price Targets
$33.17Previous close
$19Low
$29.56Average
$45High
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted previous close from FN2's market snapshot as of Jul 31, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barclays | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI Group | Underperform | Underperform | Maintain | Jul 10, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Jun 26, 2026 |
| TD Cowen | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jun 22, 2026 |
| JP Morgan | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Apr 29, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Apr 29, 2026 |
| B of A Securities | Underperform | Underperform | Maintain | Oct 2, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Jul 11, 2025 |
| UBS | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Feb 3, 2025 |
| Keefe, Bruyette & Woods | Underperform | Underperform | Maintain | Feb 3, 2025 |
| BMO Capital | Market Perform | Market Perform | Maintain | Feb 3, 2025 |
| Deutsche Bank | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Nov 5, 2024 |
| Credit Suisse | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | May 2, 2023 |
| Citigroup | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Apr 12, 2022 |
| CFRA | Hold | Hold | Maintain | May 1, 2020 |
| Standpoint Research | Buy | Accumulate | Maintain | Dec 23, 2019 |
| Keefe Bruyette & Woods | Underperform | Market Perform | Downgrade | Apr 29, 2019 |
| Bank of America | Underperform | Neutral | Downgrade | Jan 11, 2019 |
| Jefferies | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Oct 11, 2016 |
| Susquehanna | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Nov 3, 2015 |
| PiperJaffray | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Jun 3, 2015 |
| Evercore Partners | Overweight | Equal Weight | Upgrade | Nov 22, 2013 |
| Macquarie | Neutral | Outperform | Downgrade | May 21, 2013 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 9, 2013 |
| Stifel | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 9, 2013 |
| Sterne Agee | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | May 2, 2013 |
| Nomura | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | May 1, 2013 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted previous close $33.17. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $34 | $32.83 | +2.5% | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI | Analyst unavailable | $35 | $33.84 | +5.5% | Jul 10, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $34 | $32.95 | +2.5% | Jun 26, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI | Analyst unavailable | $32 | $31.5 | -3.5% | Jun 8, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $31 | $30.46 | -6.5% | May 6, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI | Glenn Schorr | $28 | $29.72 | -15.6% | Apr 29, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $34 | $29.46 | +2.5% | Apr 29, 2026 |
| Barclays | Benjamin Budish | $31 | $29.46 | -6.5% | Apr 29, 2026 |
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $26 | $26.55 | -21.6% | Apr 17, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI | Analyst unavailable | $27 | $24.94 | -18.6% | Apr 10, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $22 | $27.25 | -33.7% | Feb 3, 2026 |
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $25 | $25.63 | -24.6% | Jan 15, 2026 |
| Barclays | Benjamin Budish | $22 | $23.46 | -33.7% | Dec 12, 2025 |
| Morgan Stanley | Michael Cyprys | $19 | $20.67 | -42.7% | Oct 18, 2024 |
| Barclays | Benjamin Budish | $20 | $20.74 | -39.7% | Aug 27, 2024 |
| Wells Fargo | Aidan Hall | $23 | $19.78 | -30.7% | Aug 22, 2024 |
| BMO Capital | Etienne Ricard | $26 | $23.08 | -21.6% | Jul 26, 2024 |
| Deutsche Bank | Brian Bedell | $29 | $27.2 | -12.6% | Apr 5, 2024 |
| CFRA | Catherine Seifert | $30 | $27.04 | -9.6% | Mar 14, 2024 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $26 | $27.1 | -21.6% | Dec 15, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $23 | $26.42 | -30.7% | Nov 23, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $26 | $27.2 | -21.6% | Nov 15, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $20 | $22.22 | -39.7% | Oct 3, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $21 | $21.8 | -36.7% | Oct 3, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $29 | $28.96 | -12.6% | Aug 12, 2022 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $27 | $27.62 | -18.6% | Aug 1, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $21 | $22.73 | -36.7% | Jun 30, 2022 |
| BMO Capital | James Fotheringham | $27 | $23.07 | -18.6% | Jun 14, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $25 | $25.14 | -24.6% | May 19, 2022 |
| KBW | Robert Lee | $45 | $36.98 | +35.7% | Nov 2, 2021 |
| Wells Fargo | Christopher Harris | $30 | $32.47 | -9.6% | May 5, 2021 |
| Barclays | Jeremy Campbell | $28 | $32.47 | -15.6% | May 5, 2021 |
Track every rating change on BEN the moment it posts. Free to start.
Start freeMarket reaction
prior-close to event-session close
Stock move
+6.9%
Event window
SPY move
-0.5%
Same window
Abnormal move
+7.3%
Stock minus SPY
Volume
2.4×
Versus trailing sessions
Subsequent drift
+7.5%
Up to 20 sessions
BENSPY benchmark
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What changed
EPS beat the $0.55 estimate by 29%, coming in at $0.71. Revenue exceeded consensus by 2.9% ($1.75B vs $1.70B estimated). Net inflows rose 28% QoQ to $16.9B with record gross sales across all regions. The quarter introduced several new strategic moves not present in Q1: the acquisition of 250 Digital, the launch of FranklinCrypto targeting institutional crypto investors, the deployment of tokenized ETFs on major crypto exchanges (Kraken, Coinbase, Binance, Ondo), and a multi-agent AI orchestration platform called the Intelligence Hub. Canvas AUM reached $22.9B growing at ~72% CAGR, while ETF AUM rose to $62B with active ETFs now 45% of the franchise.
Guidance delta
Guidance was maintained, consistent with the prior quarter. Management reaffirmed its multi-year strategic plan, the >30% margin expansion target by 2027, the $200M cost-saving initiatives, and the $30B+ annual alternatives fundraising goal. No upward or downward revision to guidance was indicated.
Key takeaways
- EPS of $0.71 beat the $0.55 estimate by 29%; revenue of $1.75B beat the $1.70B estimate by 2.9%.
- Net inflows of $16.9B, up 28% QoQ, with record gross sales and positive flows across all regions.
- Alternatives fundraising reached $22.9B this quarter, on track for the $30B+ annual target.
- Canvas tax-optimization platform hit $22.9B AUM, growing ~72% CAGR with new tax-efficient solutions.
- ETF AUM rose to $62B, with active ETFs now 45% of the ETF franchise.
- Acquisition of 250 Digital and launch of FranklinCrypto extend digital-asset capabilities.
Management priorities
- Exceed $30B annual fundraising target for alternatives, led by private credit and secondary private equity.
- Scale FranklinCrypto and expand institutional crypto-venture offerings.
- Continue rollout of tokenized ETFs on major crypto exchanges.
- Enhance Canvas platform with new tax-optimization overlays and risk-factor tools.
- Invest in AI capabilities across distribution, investment research, and operations.
- Achieve multi-year margin expansion target of >30% by 2027 through $200M cost-saving initiatives.
Related earnings events
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-07-26T00:37:12.209961+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-07-31T06:33:36.664078+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-07-31T06:33:36.661222+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated . For educational purposes only; not investment advice.